German drug authority grants 7 patients permission to buy marijuana
When Americas drug laws fall, the rest of the world will follow quickly. This fight, our fight isn’t just about freedom for American Citizens, it’s not just about the millions of our brothers (and sisters) that languish behind bars and are scarred for life with a criminal record. It’s about freeing cannabis users world wide.
Germany today took the first step in a long road to reform by allowing 7 patients the right to use medical marijuana. Of course major conditions are cited by Winfried Kleinert, the head of the Bundesopiumstelle (the German FDA).
According to Kleinerts’ evaluation cannabis is acceptable in exceptional cases only: “This won’t become common treatment, it will only be granted for those who do not respond to other medications.”
Franjo Grotenhermen, the chairman of “Arbeitsgemeinschaft Cannabis als Medizin” (Association Medicinal Cannabis) estimates that this is the case with more than 50.000 people all over Germany. “You can see that there is a change of thinking going on in health policy. Politicians who saw cannabis solely as a drug are now recognizing the other side of the coin.”
Grotenhermen and Kleinert see opportunities for application especially for people with chronic pains, multiple sclerosis, tourette syndrom, cancer and HIV.
When America changes, other governments not only get the message that medical marijuana works, but that they will not face the draconian economic sanctions that has been used to keep the Global War on Marijuana going, but as of now Germany is about where we were in 1973 (with a few desperate patients that are dying without it).
The German published version is here. [Note: They mean fifty thousand when they write 50.000. In Germany, they swap commas and decimal points, so fifty thousand is 50.000 and pi is 3,14159 - strange, huh? -- "R"R]
